Systems and methods for processing requests for pharmaceuticals that require insurer preapproval

ABSTRACT

Systems, methods, and apparatus for managing patients in need of a predetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based upon patient clinical data are provided. Prescription information is obtained for each respective patient. Such information includes an identity of the patients and amounts of the pharmaceutical that has been prescribed to the patients. Further, clinical information associated with each patient is received. The clinical information one or more determinants that each contributes to providing a basis for authorizing or denying patient coverage for the pharmaceutical. At least one determinant in the one or more determinants is not a standardized code. Coverage for a patient for the predetermined pharmaceutical is requested by transmitting the prescription and clinical information to a specialty pharmaceutical distributor at a remote location. A grant or denial of coverage for the patient is then received from the remote location and stored in an electronic record associated with the patient.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 60/937,830 entitled “Systems and Methods for Processing Requests forPharmaceuticals that Require Insurer Preapproval,” filed Jun. 29, 2007,which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

1 FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to systems and methods for processing arequest for a prescription for a predetermined pharmaceutical thatrequires preauthorization based upon clinical data of a patient.

2 BACKGROUND

There exists a wide range of specialty pharmaceuticals such as SYNAGIS®(MedImmune, Gaithersburg, Md.). In the case of SYNAGIS®, the specialtypharmaceutical is a unique injectable biologic. SYNAGIS® is one of thevery few specialty pharmaceuticals that are used in all treatmentsettings: hospitals, doctors, home care companies. SYNAGIS® has to beadministered by a health care professional. Consequently, it is not aself-administrable pharmaceutical. It is used on premature infantsprimarily and it is non-chronic. The premature infants who get thespecialty pharmaceutical usually do so during the cold and flu season.Patients are treated roughly from October to March, depending on wherethey are in the United States and the terms and conditions of theirpayer policy. Once a patient has been subjected to a SYNAGIS® treatmentregimen, they no longer require the specialty pharmaceutical insubsequent years. SYNAGIS® prevents a severe viral infection that inmany cases can hospitalize a premature baby and in a very small numberof cases, actually result in death. SYNAGIS® is a relatively high-costspecialty pharmaceutical in the pediatrics space. Assuming that asubject gets approximately five doses of SYNAGIS® in a treatmentregimen, the cost for administration can be thousands of dollars.

The problem in the art that specialty pharmaceuticals such as SYNAGIS®presents are the widely varying conditions and circumstances under whichinsurance covers each patient for such drugs. In many instances, aninsurance plan may not cover certain products. And, while in mostinstances insurance plans do cover specialty pharmaceutical such asSYNAGIS®, the conditions under which each such insurance plan coverssuch drugs widely varies. For instance, the patient selection criteriavary from insurance payer by insurance payer. Additionally, in the caseof SYNAGIS®, the season length varies by region of the country and bypayer policy. Furthermore, in the case of SYNAGIS®, because it is apediatric specialty pharmaceutical, each and every year pediatriciansmust identify and qualify an entirely new patient pool. Anothercomplication associated with drugs, such as SYNAGIS®, is that specialtypharmacy distributors supply them. In the United States, there areseveral hundred such distributors that distribute specialtypharmaceutical such as SYNAGIS®.

A specialty pharmacy distributor has functionality equivalent to a mailorder center, only for high-cost biologics. To order a specialtypharmaceutical for a patient, a physician has to complete a form andsend it the specialty pharmacy. The form is typically one sheet long andincludes information pertaining to identification of the patient, thepatient's insurance, and the patient's clinical circumstances. The formas a practical matter serves two functions. First, it serves to providethe specialty pharmacy with information to get the product preauthorizedby the payer, and second, assuming the patient qualifies, it serves as aprescription by which the pharmacy can then legally dispense the drug.Presently, over the course of the specialty pharmaceutical's life, allthis is done on paper and by Fax. This conventional practice, whilefunctional, is unsatisfactory. Often, the paper forms are incomplete orillegible, which means that the specialty pharmacy that receives theform has to contact the physician's office for additional clinicalinformation, additional demographic or insurance information, or quiteliterally to understand what the doctor wrote on the form. Conversely,physicians are faced with the problems of (i) identifying a suitablespecialty pharmacy that sells the specialty pharmaceutical to send theforms to and (ii) determining what information is required by such aspecialty pharmacy. As indicated above, given the widely variedrequirements of the insurance plans that cover the products such asSYNAGIS®, coupled with the varied rules and procedures of the numerousspecialty pharmacists that sell such products, there is no uniformity inthe information required by specialty pharmacies.

Moreover, adding to the complexity in ordering specialtypharmaceuticals, because of their relatively high costs and the widelyvarying conditions under which insurance companies authorize their use,physician requests for such drugs are scrutinized and, in someinstances, denied. When a request is denied, a physician may appeal thedenial. As in the case of ordering the specialty pharmaceutical in thefirst place, the appeal process varies from insurance company toinsurance company.

In the art, there exists e-prescribing software and hardware thatelectronically transfers prescription information. E-prescribing isuseful in situations where a doctor wishes to send a requestelectronically to a pharmacy without having to provide a written scriptto the patient. This is advantageous for several reasons, including theelimination of problems that arise from handwriting legibility, theconvenience to the pharmacist, and to the patient. For instance, ratherthan hand delivery a script to the pharmacists and then waiting for upto an hour for the prescription to be filled, the prescription canalready be filled when the patient arrives at the pharmacists. TheUnited States government has supported e-prescribing initiatives and ithas met an enthusiastic response in the medical community. However,e-prescribing is not in widespread use to date. Moreover, with respectto specialty pharmaceuticals, known e-prescribing systems do not have amechanism for providing additional clinical information with the requestfor a prescription. Thus, known e-prescribing systems fail to provideany kind of information for drugs that might require prior authorizationfrom insurance provider. As a consequence, e-prescribing is limited tocommon pharmaceuticals that don't require prior clinical-based review bythe insurance provider prior to authorization. Additionally, there aresystems used by vendors that will store and convey insurance informationor patient demographics. However, such systems do not have means forattaching a prescription.

Given the above background, what is needed in the art are improvedsystems and methods for ordering specialty pharmaceuticals.

3 SUMMARY

One aspect provides a method for processing a request for a prescriptionfor a predetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization basedupon clinical data of a patient. In the method prescription informationis obtained for the patient. The prescription information comprises anidentity of the patient and an amount of the predeterminedpharmaceutical. Further, clinical information associated with thepatient is received. The clinical information comprises one or moredeterminants, where each such determinant contributes to a basis forauthorizing or denying coverage to the patient for the predeterminedpharmaceutical. At least one of these determinants is not a standardizedcode. In the method a determination as to whether to grant coverage tothe patient for the predetermined pharmaceutical based upon theprescription information and the clinical information is made. Further,the coverage decision is communicated to a user interface device, amonitor, a computer-readable storage medium, a computer-readable memory,or a local or remote computer system, or the coverage decision isdisplayed. A remote computer system is a computer system that isaccessed over a network connection. The network connection can besupported by a physical cable or a wireless communication. An example ofa network connection is the Internet. A remote computer that is beingaccessed is typically in a different building or even a different statethan the person or process that is accessing the remote computer,communicating information to the remote computer, or retrievinginformation from the remote computer.

In some embodiments, the clinical information is a gestational age ofthe patient, a weight of the patient, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has congenital heart disease, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has chronic respiratory diseasearising in the perinatal period, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has a chronic pulmonary disease, and/or a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a congenital anomaly of therespiratory system. In some embodiments the clinical informationcomprises a categorical indication as to whether the patient hascongenital heart disease and, when the patient has congenital heartdisease, the group of determinants further comprises a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has moderate or severe pulmonaryhypertension, an identity of a medication that is being given to thepatient for the congenital heart disease, and a date when the medicationfor the congenital heart disease was administered to the patient. Insome embodiments, the clinical information comprises a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a chronic pulmonary diseaseand, when the patient has the chronic pulmonary disease, the group ofdeterminants further comprises a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient receives supplemental oxygen, a categorical indication as towhether the patient receives a corticosteroid, a categorical indicationas to whether the patient receives a diuretic, and/or a categoricalindication as to whether the patient receives a bronchodilators.

In some embodiments, an age of the patient is determined from theclinical information or the prescription information and coverage to thepatient for the predetermined pharmaceutical is denied when the patientis more than two years old. In some embodiments, the clinicalinformation comprises at least two determinants, at least threedeterminants, at least four determinants, or at least five determinantsfrom the group of determinants consisting of a gestational age of thepatient, a weight of the patient, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has congenital heart disease, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has chronic respiratory disease arising in theperinatal period, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hasa chronic pulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system.

In some embodiments, the clinical information comprises one or more riskfactors, two or more risk factors, three or more risk factors, four ormore risk factors, or five or more risk factors selected from the groupconsisting of a categorical indication as to whether the patient has aschool age sibling, a categorical indication as to whether the patienthas been subjected to an air pollutant, a categorical indication as towhether the patient attends day care, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has severe neuromuscular disease, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient is subject to crowded livingconditions, a categorical indication as to whether the patient had abirth weight of less than 2500 grams, a categorical indication as towhether the patient was part of a multiple birth, a categoricalindication as to whether there is a history of asthma in the patient'sfamily, a categorical indication as to whether the patient suffers froma congenital abnormality or airway, and/or a categorical indication asto whether the patient has been exposed to tobacco smoke.

In some embodiments, the prescription information and the clinicalinformation for the patient is received from a remote computer in apacket-based form over a wide area network or Internet. In someembodiments, the prescription information and the clinical informationfor the patient is received in a secure manner over the wide areanetwork or Internet. In some embodiments, the prescription informationand the clinical information for the patient are received using theHypertext Transport Protocol over a secure socket layer.

In some embodiments the determining step and the communication step ofthe methods are each done without human intervention. In someembodiments, the prescription information for the patient furtherincludes one or more, two or more, three or more, four or more, five ormore, six or more, or seven or more insurance information elementsselected from the group consisting of identification of the primaryinsurer for the patient, a primary cardholder name, a primary cardholdersocial security number, a primary policy number, a primary insurertelephone number, a primary employer, a primary group number, anidentification of a secondary insurer for the patient, a secondarycardholder name, a secondary cardholder social security number, asecondary policy number, a secondary insurer telephone number, asecondary employer, and a secondary group number.

Another aspect provides a computer-readable medium storing a computerprogram product, executable by a computer, to process a request for aprescription for a predetermined pharmaceutical that requirespreauthorization based upon clinical data of a patient. The computerprogram comprises instructions for obtaining prescription informationfor the patient, wherein the prescription information comprises anidentity of the patient and an amount of the predeterminedpharmaceutical. The computer program product further comprisesinstructions for receiving clinical information associated with thepatient, where the clinical information comprises one or moredeterminants and where each determinant in the one or more determinantscontributes to a basis for authorizing or denying coverage to thepatient for the predetermined pharmaceutical. In some embodiments, atleast one, at least two, at least three, at least four, or at least fiveof the determinants in the one or more determinants is not astandardized code. The computer program product further comprisesinstructions for determining whether to grant coverage to the patientfor the predetermined pharmaceutical based upon the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information. The computer program productfurther comprises instructions for communicating the coverage decisionto a user interface device, a monitor, a computer-readable storagemedium, a computer-readable memory, or a local or remote computersystem, or displaying the coverage decision.

Still another aspect comprises an apparatus for processing a request fora prescription for a predetermined pharmaceutical that requirespreauthorization based upon clinical data of a patient. The apparatuscomprises a processor and a memory, coupled to the processor. The memorystores a module comprising instructions for obtaining prescriptioninformation for the patient, where the prescription informationcomprises an identity of the patient and an amount of the predeterminedpharmaceutical. The module further comprises instructions for receivingclinical information associated with the patient, where the clinicalinformation comprises one or more determinants and where eachdeterminant in the one or more determinants contributes to a basis forauthorizing or denying coverage to the patient for the predeterminedpharmaceutical, and where at least one determinant in the one or moredeterminants is not a standardized code. The module further comprisesinstructions for determining whether to grant coverage to the patientfor the predetermined pharmaceutical based upon the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information. The module further comprisesinstructions for communicating the coverage decision to a user interfacedevice, a monitor, a computer-readable storage medium, acomputer-readable memory, or a local or remote computer system, ordisplaying the coverage decision.

Yet another aspect provides a method for managing a plurality ofpatients that are each in need of a predetermined pharmaceutical thatrequires preauthorization based upon patient clinical data. In themethod prescription information for each respective patient in theplurality of patients is received. The prescription informationcomprises an identity of the respective patient and an amount of thepredetermined pharmaceutical that has been prescribed to the patient. Inthe method, clinical information associated with each respective patientin the plurality of patients is also received. The clinical informationfor each respective patient comprises one or more determinants and eachdeterminant in the one or more determinants contributes to a basis forauthorizing or denying coverage to the respective patient for thepredetermined pharmaceutical. At least one, at least two, at leastthree, at least four, or at least five determinants in the one or moredeterminants is not a standardized code. In the methods, coverage for apatient in the plurality of patients is requested for the predeterminedpharmaceutical by transmitting the prescription information and theclinical information to a specialty pharmaceutical distributor at aremote location by electronic means. Further, in the method, a grant ordenial of coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients isreceived for the predetermined pharmaceutical. The grant or denial ofcoverage for the patient is stored in a record associated with thepatient.

In some embodiments, the clinical information for a patient in theplurality of patients comprises at least one, at least two, at leastthree, at least four, at least five, or at least six determinants fromthe group of determinants consisting of a gestational age of thepatient, a weight of the patient, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has congenital heart disease, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has chronic respiratory disease arising in theperinatal period, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hasa chronic pulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system. In someembodiments, the clinical information comprises a categorical indicationas to whether the patient has congenital heart disease, where, when thepatient has congenital heart disease, the group of determinants furthercomprises a categorical indication as to whether the patient hasmoderate or severe pulmonary hypertension, an identity of a medicationthat is being given to the patient for the congenital heart disease,and/or a date when the medication for the congenital heart disease wasadministered to the patient.

In some embodiments, the clinical information comprises a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a chronic pulmonary diseasewhere, when the patient has the chronic pulmonary disease, the group ofdeterminants further comprises a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient receives supplemental oxygen, a categorical indication as towhether the patient receives a corticosteroid, a categorical indicationas to whether the patient receives a diuretic, and/or a categoricalindication as to whether the patient receives a bronchodilators. IN someembodiments, the requesting step further comprises providing an age ofthe patient and the receiving step comprises receiving a denial ofcoverage for the patient when the patient is more than two years old.

In some embodiments, the clinical information comprises at least two, atleast three, at least four, or at least five determinants from the groupof determinants consisting of a gestational age of the patient, a weightof the patient, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hascongenital heart disease, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has chronic respiratory disease arising in the perinatal period,a categorical indication as to whether the patient has a chronicpulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system. In someembodiments, the clinical information comprises one or more, two ormore, three or more, four or more, or five or more risk factors selectedfrom the group consisting of a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has a school age sibling, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has been subjected to an air pollutant, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient attends day care, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has severe neuromuscular disease, acategorical indication as to whether the patient is subjected to crowdedliving conditions, a categorical indication as to whether the patienthad a birth weight of less than 2500 grams, a categorical indication asto whether the patient was part of a multiple birth, a categoricalindication as to whether there is a history of asthma in the patient'sfamily, a categorical indication as to whether the patient suffers froma congenital abnormality or airway, and a categorical indication as towhether the patient has been exposed to tobacco smoke.

In some embodiments, transmittal of the prescription information and theclinical information for the patient to a remote computer is done in apacket-based form over a wide area network or Internet. In someembodiments, the prescription information and the clinical informationfor the patient are transmitted in a secure manner over the wide areanetwork or Internet. In some embodiments, the prescription informationand the clinical information for the patient are transmitted using theHypertext Transport Protocol over a secure socket layer. In someembodiments, the prescription information for the patient furtherincludes one or more, two or more, three or more, four or more, five ormore, or six or more insurance information elements selected from thegroup consisting of identification of the primary insurer for thepatient, a primary cardholder name, a primary cardholder social securitynumber, a primary policy number, a primary insurer telephone number, aprimary employer, a primary group number, an identification of asecondary insurer for the patient, a secondary cardholder name, asecondary cardholder social security number, a secondary policy number,a secondary insurer telephone number, a secondary employer, and asecondary group number.

In some embodiments, an identity of a specialty pharmacy distributor fora patient in the plurality of patients is stored in a patient recordassociated with the patient. In some embodiments, an identity of a drugbenefit provider for a patient in the plurality of patients is stored ina patient record associated with the patient. In some embodiments, theclinical information for a patient in the plurality of patientscomprises a categorical indication as to whether the patient spent timein a neonatal intensive care unit. In some embodiments, the prescriptioninformation for a patient in the plurality of patients further comprisesan address where the prescription is to be shipped. In some embodiments,the method further comprises generating a schedule for when a patient inthe plurality of patients should receive the predeterminedpharmaceutical and storing the schedule in a patient record associatedwith the patient. In some embodiments, the method further comprisessending an alert to a care practitioner or patient at a time prior towhen the patient is due for a dosage of the predetermined pharmaceuticalas determined by the calendar. In some embodiments, the method furthercomprises storing an identity of each practitioner in a medicalpractitioner group that is responsible for making requests forprescriptions for the predetermined pharmaceutical for any of thepatients in the plurality of patients.

Still another aspect provides a method for processing a request for aprescription for a predetermined pharmaceutical that requirespreauthorization based upon clinical information of a patient. Themethod comprises obtaining prescription information for the patient,where the prescription information comprises (i) an identity of thepatient, (ii) an amount of the predetermined pharmaceutical, and (iii) aprescription for the amount of the predetermined pharmaceutical. Themethod further comprises receiving patient clinical information, wherethe patient clinical information comprises one or more determinants ofthe patient and where each determinant in the one or more determinantscontributes to a basis for authorizing or denying coverage to thepatient for the predetermined pharmaceutical, and where at least onedeterminant in the one or more determinants is not a standardized code.The method further comprises storing the prescription information andthe patient clinical information in electronic form. The method furthercomprises sending the prescription information and the patient clinicalinformation to a pharmacy that is configured to use the prescriptioninformation and the patient clinical information to make a coveragedecision as to whether to grant coverage to the patient for thepredetermined pharmaceutical, where the coverage decision made by thepharmacy is based upon (i) a set of guidelines provided by an insurer ofthe patient, (ii) the prescription information, and (iii) the patientclinical information. The method further comprises communicating thecoverage decision to a user interface device, a monitor, acomputer-readable storage medium in tangible form, a computer-readablememory, or a local or remote computer system, or displaying the coveragedecision in a user readable form.

Another aspect provides a computer-readable medium storing a computerprogram product, executable by a computer, to manage a plurality ofpatients that are each in need of a predetermined pharmaceutical thatrequires preauthorization based upon patient clinical data. The computerprogram product comprises instructions for obtaining prescriptioninformation for each respective patient in the plurality of patients,where the prescription information comprises an identity of therespective patient and an amount of the predetermined pharmaceuticalthat has been prescribed to the patient. The computer program productfurther comprises instructions for receiving clinical informationassociated with each respective patient in the plurality of patients,where the clinical information for each respective patient comprises oneor more determinants and where each determinant in the one or moredeterminants contributes to a basis for authorizing or denying coverageto the respective patient for the predetermined pharmaceutical, andwhere at least one determinant in the one or more determinants is not astandardized code. The computer program product further comprisesinstructions for requesting coverage for a patient in the plurality ofpatients for the predetermined pharmaceutical by transmitting theprescription information and the clinical information to a specialtypharmaceutical distributor at a remote location by electronic means. Thecomputer program product further comprises instructions for receiving agrant or denial of coverage for a patient in the plurality of patientsfor the predetermined pharmaceutical. The computer program productfurther comprises instructions for storing the grant or denial ofcoverage for the patient in a record associated with the patient.

Still another aspect provides an apparatus for managing a plurality ofpatients that are each in need of a predetermined pharmaceutical thatrequires preauthorization based upon patient clinical data. Theapparatus comprises a processor and a memory, coupled to the processor.The memory stores a module comprising instructions for obtainingprescription information for each respective patient in the plurality ofpatients, where the prescription information comprises an identity ofthe respective patient and an amount of the predetermined pharmaceuticalthat has been prescribed to the patient. The module further comprisesinstructions for receiving clinical information associated with eachrespective patient in the plurality of patients, where the clinicalinformation for each respective patient comprises one or moredeterminants and where each determinant in the one or more determinantscontributes to a basis for authorizing or denying coverage to therespective patient for the predetermined pharmaceutical. At least one,two, three, four, for five determinants in the one or more determinantsis not a standardized code. The module further comprises instructionsfor requesting coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients forthe predetermined pharmaceutical by transmitting the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information to a specialty pharmaceuticaldistributor at a remote location by electronic means. The module furthercomprises instructions for receiving a grant or denial of coverage for apatient in the plurality of patients for the predeterminedpharmaceutical. Further still, the module comprises instructions forstoring the grant or denial of coverage for the patient in a recordassociated with the patient.

4 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary computer system for providing specialtypharmaceuticals in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an electronic form for entering and reviewing generaldemographic details of a patient in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an electronic form for entering and reviewing primaryinsurance information of a patient in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an electronic form for entering and reviewing drugbenefit manager insurance information of a patient in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an electronic form for entering specialty pharmacydistributor information of a patient in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an electronic form for entering a primary diagnosisfor a patient in need of a specialty pharmaceutical in accordance withan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates an electronic form for entering clinical informationassociated with a primary diagnosis for a patient in need of a specialtypharmaceutical in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 illustrates an electronic form for entering clinical informationassociated with a secondary diagnosis for a patient in need of aspecialty pharmaceutical in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 9 illustrates an electronic form for entering risk factors of apatient in need of a specialty pharmaceutical in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates an electronic form for entering other medicalcriteria of a patient in need of a specialty pharmaceutical that may beof use to an insurer for approving a prescription for the specialtypharmaceutical for the patient in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates an electronic form for entering neonatal intensivecare unit (NICU) history and information regarding whether SYNAGIS® wasadministered in the NICU in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 12 illustrates a form for entering specialty pharmaceuticaldelivery instructions for a prescription to a specialty pharmaceuticalin accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13A illustrates a form for entering a prescription for a specialtypharmaceutical in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 13B and C collectively illustrate an exemplary prescription for aspecialty pharmaceutical that is generated by a pharmaceutical onlinetracking module and includes at least some noncoded clinical data thatcan be used by an insurer to deny or approve coverage for the specialtypharmaceutical in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 illustrates a form for entering status management informationfor a specialty pharmaceutical dosage regimen in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates a form for generation documents related to aspecialty pharmaceutical including a prescription, a letter appealingdenial of a prescription to a specialty pharmaceutical, a letterdirected to the specialty pharmaceutical patient, and a letter to theparent of the patient indicating a denial of prescription for aspecialty pharmaceutical in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a dosage regimen (calendar) for administration of aclinical pharmaceutical to a patient that is stored in a patient recordassociated with the patient in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates an electronic form for uploading documentsassociated with a patient such as a NICU discharge summary in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 illustrates an electronic form for reviewing a patient specialtypharmaceutical transaction history in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 19 illustrates an electronic form for entering information about amedical practice that oversees the prescribing and administration ofspecialty pharmaceuticals to patients in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 20 illustrates a form for specifying the location of a medicalpractice that oversees the prescribing and administration of specialtypharmaceuticals to patients in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 21 illustrates a form for specifying the medical care givers at amedical practice that oversees the prescribing and administration ofspecialty pharmaceuticals to patients in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 22 illustrates a form for specifying the contact information of amedical care giver at a medical practice that oversees the prescribingand administration of specialty pharmaceuticals to patients inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 illustrates a form for specifying the contact information of amedical care giver at a medical practice that oversees the prescribingand administration of specialty pharmaceuticals to patients inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24 illustrates an electronic mechanism for providing package insertinformation for a specialty pharmaceutical that is supported by apharmaceutical online tracking module in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 25 illustrates an electronic mechanism for providing safetyinformation for a specialty pharmaceutical that is supported by apharmaceutical online tracking module in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 26 illustrates a form for providing a roster of the patients thatreceive specialty pharmaceutical care at a medical practice group inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout theseveral views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Systems and methods that address the shortcomings found in the prior artare provided. One embodiment provides is a web-based tool thatphysicians can use to store patient information, send out clean andcomplete requests for specialty pharmaceuticals to specialty pharmacistsand, in general, manage their specialty pharmaceuticals patients. Usingthe systems and methods disclosed herein alleviates the need forpaper-based forms and provides a convenient web-based method forelectronic prior authorization of specialty pharmaceuticals.

FIG. 1 details an exemplary system 11 for providing specialtypharmaceuticals. The system preferably comprises a computer system 10having:

-   -   a central processing unit 22;    -   a main non-volatile storage unit 14, for example a hard disk        drive, for storing software and data, the storage unit 14        controlled by storage controller 12;    -   a system memory 36, preferably high speed random-access memory        (RAM), for storing system control programs, data, and        application programs, comprising programs and data loaded from        non-volatile storage unit 14; system memory 36 may also include        read-only memory (ROM);    -   a user interface 32, comprising one or more input devices (e.g.,        keyboard 28, a mouse) and a display 26 or other output device;    -   a network interface card 20 (communications circuitry) for        connecting to any wired or wireless communication network 34        (e.g., a wide area network such as the Internet);    -   a power source 24 to power the aforementioned elements; and    -   an internal bus 30 for interconnecting the aforementioned        elements of the system. Operation of the computer 10 is        controlled primarily by the operating system 40, which is        executed by the central processing unit 22. The operating system        40 can be stored in the system memory 36. In a typical        implementation, the system memory 36 also includes:    -   a file system 42 for controlling access to the various files and        data structures used by the present invention;    -   a pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 for assisting medical        professionals with requests for specialty pharmaceuticals;    -   a patient data store 44 for confidentially storing information        about patients in need of specialty pharmaceuticals such as        patient demographic information 48, insurance information 50,        clinical information 52, status/documentation 54, injections 56,        specialty pharmaceutical use history 58; and other documents        5060 associated with patients;    -   a practice profile module 70 for storing practice information;    -   one or more package inserts 72 for each of the specialty        pharmaceuticals tracked by pharmaceutical online tracking module        43;    -   safety information 74 for each of the specialty pharmaceuticals        tracked by pharmaceutical online tracking module 43; and    -   a patient roster 76 for providing the details of each patient        handled by a physician or a physician practice group supported        by pharmaceutical online tracking module 43.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, computer 10 comprises a patient data store 44.Patient data store 44 can be any form of data storage system including,but not limited to, a flat file, a relational database (SQL), or anon-line analytical processing (OLAP) database (MDX and/or variantsthereof). In some specific embodiments, patient data store 44 is ahierarchical OLAP cube. In some specific embodiments, patient data store44 comprises a star schema that is not stored as a cube but hasdimension tables that define hierarchy. Still further, in someembodiments, patient data store 44 has hierarchy that is not explicitlybroken out in the underlying database or database schema (e.g.,dimension tables that are not hierarchically arranged). In someembodiments, patient data store 44 is a single database that includespatient records 46. In other embodiments, the patient data store 44 infact comprises a plurality of databases that may or may not all behosted by the same computer 10. In such embodiments, some components ofthe patient data store 44 are stored on computer systems that are notillustrated by FIG. 1 but that are addressable by the wide area network34.

In some embodiments, the data store 44 and related software modulesillustrated in FIG. 1 (e.g. pharmaceutical online tracking module 43,practice profile module 70, package insert 72, safety information 74,and patient roster 76) are on a single computer (e.g., computer 10) andin other embodiments patient data store 44 and related software modulesillustrated in FIG. 1 are hosted by several computers (not shown). Infact, any arrangement of the patient data store 44 and the softwareand/or data modules illustrated in FIG. 1 on one or more computers iswithin the scope of the present invention so long as these componentsare addressable with respect to each other across the network 34 or byother electronic means. Thus, the present invention fully encompasses abroad array of computer systems.

Provided are systems and methods that help physicians that havespecialty pharmaceutical patients to manage such patients. There are anumber of aspects involved in managing such patients. One aspect ismaintenance of a record 46 of all the information about that patient.Such information includes, but is not limited to, patient demographicinformation 48, insurance information 50, clinical information 52,status/documentation 54, injections 56, specialty pharmaceutical usehistory 58, and other documents 5060 relating to the patient. Referringto FIG. 2, exemplary demographic information 48 includes, but is notlimited to, any combination of an MRN number, gender, last name, firstname, date of birth, patient social security number, name of primaryguardian, social security number of primary guardian, address of primaryguardian, phone number of primary guardian, E-mail address of primaryguardian, name of secondary guardian, social security number ofsecondary guardian, address of secondary guardian, phone number ofsecondary guardian, and/or E-mail address of secondary guardian.

Referring to FIG. 3, there are three classes of exemplary insuranceinformation 50 views provided by an exemplary embodiment ofpharmaceutical online tracking module 43. They are an insurance view302, a drug benefit/primary benefit manager (PBM) view 304 and aspecialty pharmacy distributor view 306. In FIG. 3, the insurance view302 has been selected. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the insurance view 302provides fields that include, but are not limited to, any combination ofan identification of the primary insurer for a given patient, anindication of whether the primary insurer is commercial or Medicaid, theprimary cardholder name, the primary cardholder social security number,the primary policy number, the primary insurer telephone number, theprimary employer, the primary group number, an identification of thesecondary insurer for a given patient, an indication of whether thesecondary insurer is commercial or Medicaid, the secondary cardholdername, the secondary cardholder social security number, the secondarypolicy number, the secondary insurer telephone number, the secondaryemployer, and the secondary group number.

In FIG. 4, the drug benefit/PBM view 304 has been selected. Asillustrated in FIG. 4, the drug benefit/PBM view 304 providesinformation about any drug prescription plan that the patient may have.In FIG. 4, the drug benefit/PBM view 304 provides fields that include,but are not limited to, any combination of the identity of the drugbenefit/PBM provider for the patient, the cardholder name of the drugbenefit/PBM policy, the cardholder social security number, the policynumber, the insurance telephone number, the employer of the drugbenefit/PBM cardholder, and/or the group number. Advantageously,referring to FIG. 5, the specialty pharmacy distributor view 306 allowsfor the association of one or more specialty pharmacy distributors witha patient. Each patient's prescription for a specialty pharmaceuticalsuch as SYNAGIS® is submitted to a single specialty pharmacy distributorusually. In some instances, the prescription could be submitted to morethan one specialty pharmacy distributors but this is not typical. Forinstance, there are some instances where the prescription goes to aparticular specialty pharmacy distributor that, due to contractualconstraints with the patient's insurance provider, cannot service theprescription. In such instances, the first specialty pharmacydistributor refers the prescription to somebody else. Advantageously,specialty pharmacy distributor view 306 provides a mechanism fortracking the specialty pharmacy distributor that a patient's specialtypharmaceutical has been referred to in order to make sure that once aprescription has been sent out, the prescription is filled in a moreautomated fashion.

Referring to FIGS. 6 through 10, pharmaceutical online tracking module43 enables physicians to maintain clinical information 52 aboutspecialty pharmaceutical patients. Any of the information entered usingthe electronic forms illustrated in FIG. 6 through 10 are consideredclinical information 52. FIGS. 6 through 10 are particularly directed tomedical factors that provide a determination as to whether a patient isa good candidate for SYNAGIS® However, there is no requirement thatclinical information 52 tracked by online tracking module 43 be limitedto SYNAGIS®. The medical factors for SYNAGIS® are given to illustratethe type of clinical information that can advantageously be tracked asclinical information 52 in online tracking module 43. Thus, specificallyreferring to FIG. 6, factors that lead to a primary diagnoses 602 that apatient will be a good candidate for SYNAGIS® are provided. Thesefactors include the patient's gestational age, current weight, whetherthe patient has congenital heart disease, chronic respiratory diseasearising in the perinatal period, other respiratory conditions of thefetus or newborn, or congenital anomalies of the respiratory system. Foreach of the medical factors identified in the primary diagnosis(congenital heart disease, chronic respiratory disease, etc.), there isan associated medical criteria form that can be used to easily retrieveand store medical criteria associated with the medical factor. Forexample, in FIG. 6 the patient has been indicated to have chronicrespiratory disease. Thus, correspondingly, in FIG. 7, an associatedform is provided to enter medical criteria related to the condition ofchronic pulmonary disease. The form illustrated in FIG. 7 is accessed byclicking on the “Medical Criteria” tab 720 and selecting tab 702“diagnosis 1.” For chronic pulmonary disease, in the illustrativeembodiment shown in FIG. 7, the form can be used to indicate whether thepatient receives oxygen, corticosteroids, diuretics, and bronchodilatorsand the last date for which each of these medications. Tabs 702 through708 will vary depending on the primary diagnosis made in the formillustrated in FIG. 6.

In the exemplary embodiment based upon the diagnosis provided in theform illustrated in FIG. 7, when tab 704 is selected, informationassociated with a diagnosis of hemodynamically significant congenitalheart disease (CHD) at 24 and less months of age may be entered asillustrated in FIG. 8. Such information includes an indication as towhether the patient has diagnosis of moderate to severe pulmonaryhypertension, medications being given for CHD, and the last datereceived. Referring to FIG. 9, in the case of SYNAGIS®, risk factorsthat make a patient a better candidate for the pharmaceutical may beentered by selecting tab 706. As illustrated in FIG. 9, these riskfactors include whether the patient has a school-age sibling, whetherthe patient has been subjected to an air pollutant, whether the patientattends day care, whether the patient has severe neuromuscular disease,whether the patient is subject to crowded living conditions, whether thepatient had a birth weight of less than 2500 grams, whether the patientwas part of a multiple birth, whether there is a history of asthma inthe patient's family, whether the patient suffers from a congenitalabnormality or airway, and whether the patient has been exposed totobacco smoke (e.g., the patient has family members that smoke).Referring to FIG. 10, the practitioner can enter and store other medicalcriteria of the practitioner's choosing by selecting tab 708.

The ability to enter, store and retrieve medical criteria in formstailored to particular specialty pharmaceuticals as illustrated in FIGS.6 through 10 is highly advantageous. Such information is highly variedfrom patient to patient and yet is the predominant determining factorconsidered by insurers when authorizing a prescription of a specialtypharmaceutical. Thus, given a particular patient's insurance policy,certain of the information illustrated in exemplary FIGS. 6 through 10either needs to be present or otherwise accounted for in order for thepatient to be approved for treatment. In the case of specialtypharmaceuticals other than SYNAGIS®, other medical criteria may beprovided through forms that are equivalent to the forms illustrated inFIGS. 6 through 10.

Referring to FIG. 11, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 allowsthe medical practitioner to attach a history from the time that thispatient may have stayed in a neonatal intensive care unit. Thus, if thepatient was premature or had other complications that caused the patientto be in a neonatal intensive care unit, an indication that the patientspent time is indicated by selecting the “NICU history” tab 1102 whichpulls up the form illustrated in FIG. 11. Furthermore, the NICUdischarge summary can be attached using the scans/files tab 60. Moredetails on scans/file tab 60 are provided below in conjunction with FIG.17.

Referring to FIGS. 12 and 13A, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43allows the medical practitioner to generate a prescription (an Rx)through tab 1202. In FIG. 12, delivery instructions can be entered whentable 1302 is selected. Such delivery instructions can include, in thecase of SYNAGIS®, an indication as to whether an agency nurse is tovisit the home of the subject to deliver the pharmaceutical and, if sothe agency name. Such delivery instructions can further include theexpected date for the first or next injection. Such deliver instructionscan further indicate whether the specialty pharmaceutical is to beshipped to the practitioner's office, the patient's home, or a clinic.If a clinic is selected the form illustrated in FIG. 12 further allowsfor the provision of the clinic's address. Pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 allows for the storage of man different addresses,any of which can be selected by the medical practitioner as the deliveryaddress of the specialty pharmaceutical. FIG. 12 gives exemplary promptsfor information suitable for generating delivery instructions for aSYNAGIS® prescription. However, the invention is not so limited. FIG. 12merely serves to provide an example of the types of delivery informationthat may be given for a specialty pharmaceutical. Other deliveryinformation suitable for other specialty pharmaceuticals may beimplemented in one or more forms equivalent to the form shown in FIG. 12and all such forms are within the scope of the present invention. Asillustrated in FIG. 13A, tab 1302 provides a form for the actualprescription of the special pharmaceutical, in this case SYNAGIS®.Provided in the form illustrated in FIG. 13 is toggle box forprescribing SYNAGIS® liquid solution, a number of refills, and a togglebox for prescribing Epinephrine. Further provided in the formillustrated in FIG. 13A is a field to place known allergies of thepatient. Advantageously by simply clicking button 1306, the prescriptionis sent to the specialty pharmacists. While button 1306 indicates thatthe prescription is sent by FAX, the invention is not so limited. Insome embodiments, the prescription is sent in encrypted form over theInternet (e.g., secure Internet protocol, Hypertext Transport Protocolover a secure socket layer). Alternatively, by clicking button 1308, theprescription can be printed out and communicated to the specialtypharmacists by mail or other means.

FIGS. 13B and 13C illustrates the actual output in an exemplaryembodiment that is sent to a specialty distributor when a carepractitioner makes a request for a specialty pharmaceutical such asSYNAGIS®. As can be seen from FIGS. 13B and 13C, the present inventionprovides significant ability to provide clinical information that issimply not found in a conventional prescription such as one that apatient would get from their physician and have filled at a standardpharmacy such as WALGREENS® or other retail outlet. Advantageously, thedocument illustrated in FIGS. 13B and 13C provides the clinicalinformation that is necessary to pre-authorize a SYNAGIS® patient. Atthe very bottom of the document, in FIG. 13C, is the prescriptioninformation that will allow that specialty pharmacy to dispense theSYNAGIS® liquid solution, 15 mgs per kilogram, with six refills. Theprovider name is given and there are provisions for a signature. Theclinical information provided in the document illustrated in FIGS. 13Band 13C is not capable of being transmitted through a conventionale-prescribing system because such systems are hardwired andstandards-based in terms of patient information, insurance, clinicalinformation and ship to addresses. The clinical information communicatedin FIGS. 13B and 13C is outside e-prescribing standards. Advantageously,in some embodiments, several or all of the fields in FIGS. 13B and 13Ccan be electronically uploaded at the specialty distributor once theyhave been transmitted to the specialty distributor. Thus, in someembodiments pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 has the ability tosend the form depicted in FIGS. 13B and 13C straight from thephysician's and/or clinical practice's desktop to the specialtydistributor as opposed to actually having to print out a hard copy andsend it. In some embodiments, a digital signature can be affixed to theprescription to facility such an electronic transfer. In someembodiments, specialty distributors are provided with a software toolkitthat allows them to decode prescriptions sent by pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 so that the prescription information is directlytransferred to specialty distributor servers.

Referring to FIGS. 14 and 15, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43provides physicians with additional tools for managing specialtypharmaceutical patients. Specifically, status/documentation records 54within the patient records of patient data store 44 allows for theability to maintain the status of each patient. Referring to FIG. 14,such information can include, for example, whether the patient wasapproved by an insurance company, denied by an insurance company, orwhether the specialty pharmaceutical provider has asked for moreinformation on behalf of an insurance company. An indication as towhether the patient was approved, denied, or more information is neededcan be given by checking the appropriate corresponding toggle box in theform illustrated in FIG. 14. The form illustrated in FIG. 14 is givenwhen status management tab 1402 is selected. Referring to FIG. 15,useful functionality for the practitioner is provided when tab 1502“create/print documents” is selected. The practitioner can print theprescription by pressing tab 1504. Also, advantageously, by pressing tab1506, the practitioner can print out a standard appeal letter in caseswhere the patient's prescription for the specialty pharmaceutical wasdenied by an insurance company. Such a letter is useful for outliningand emphasizing extenuating circumstances that the insurance company maywant to consider during an appeal. Toggles 1508 and 1510 advantageouslyassist the practitioner in creating other types of letters, such as aletter to the parent of the patient when there has been a denial ofcoverage.

Referring to FIG. 16, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 allowspractitioners to maintain a history of when the specialty pharmaceuticalwas administered by selecting injections tab 56, which corresponds toinjections record 56 stored in patient data store 44. As in the case ofother forms illustrated herein, FIG. 16 uses the case of SYNAGIS® toillustrate some aspects of the present invention. Other recordsequivalent to injections record 56 can be used for other forms ofspecialty pharmaceuticals and such functionality is within the scope ofthe present invention. In FIG. 16, recommended dosage information isgiving for SYNAGIS® and the practitioner can enter the date when eachSYNAGIS® dosage was administered. Furthermore, for each administrationof SYNAGIS® in a treatment regimen, the practitioner can enterinformation such as the scheduled date of administration, the infant'sweight, the required dosage, whether the injection has beenadministered, and comments if any. The injections record 56 is highlyadvantageous because SYNAGIS® should be administered about every 28 to30 days. Thus, practitioners can use the injections record 56, andequivalent records for specialty pharmaceutical other than SYNAGIS® canbe used to determine when to schedule patients for administration of thespecialty pharmaceuticals.

Referring to FIG. 17, the practitioner can use tab 60 to attach anydocuments 5060 relevant to a patient. Once scanned, such documents canthen be associated with the record 46 for the patient that is kept inpatient data store 44. A practitioner can scan in any document relevantto the patient including, but not limited to the neonatal intensive careunit history described above, scans of insurance cards, and any otherdocuments that may be appropriate for a specialty pharmaceutical requestsuch as a request for SYNAGIS®. Referring to FIG. 18, pharmaceuticalonline tracking module 43 provides a complete history of all thetransactions associated with each of a given practitioner's patients.Such information can be stored in fields 58 in the records 46 for suchpatients in patient data store 44. Such information includestransactions involving any of the previously identified forms, includingcompletion of such forms, scanning of patient-related documents, fillingof a prescription, preparation of an appeal when a denial occurs, and soforth.

Referring to FIGS. 19 and 20, the practice profile module 70 allows apractitioner to maintain information about their practice when thepractice tab 1950 is selected. For example, by selecting tab 1902 (FIG.19) of practice module 70, the practice name, address, phone number, FAXnumber and office contact can be entered, stored, and retrieved. Byselecting tab 2002 (FIG. 20) of practice profile module 20, additionallocations and shipping addresses can be added to the practice group. Forinstance, consider the case where an employee at a practioner's group isassigned to be the SYNAGIS® coordinator. Further, consider that apractice can have one or more doctors and one or more locations. Theemployee can use the practice profile module 70 to set up all of theoffices that belong in the practice, all of the doctors in the practice,the names of all the other SYNAGIS® coordinators in the practice, and soforth. Thus, the SYNAGIS® coordinator can use practice profile module 70to do maintenance activities. In a hypothetical example, consider thepractice group Fountainhead Pediatrics, in which there are between 15and 20 doctors. Foutainhead Pediatrics has two locations. It could bethe case that some of those doctors practice in both locations, so forvarious patients there may be a need to have the SYNAGIS® sent tolocation one versus location two. Practice profile module 70 can be usedto manage the practice so that the SYNAGIS® is sent to the correctionlocation.

Referring to FIGS. 21 through 23, the practice profile module 70 allowsa practitioner to maintain information about the account users of theirpractice when the practice tab 2150 is selected. For example, in FIG.21, the full name and user name of each user of pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 in the practice group is provided. By selecting “newuser” tab 2170 or any of the full names listed in panel 2190 of FIG. 21,panel 2202 illustrated in FIG. 22 is generated, where more detailedinformation for a user of the pharmaceutical online tracking module 43in the practice group can be reviewed, revised, and entered. Asillustrated in panel 2202 of FIG. 22, information that can be providedfor each such user includes, but is not limited to, department, defaultrole, default specialty, address, cell phone number, home phone number,FAX number, daytime phone number, and E-mail address. Panel 2202includes toggles 2210 that allow the user to expand and collapsecategories of data such as (i) user details, (ii) address, (iii)associations, and (iv) an eForm. For example, referring to FIG. 23,Address, Associations, and eForm have all been collapsed leaving onlyuser details.

Referring to FIG. 24, package insert 72 provides the complete packageinsert of any specialty pharmaceutical supported by pharmaceuticalonline tracking module 43, including but not limited to SYNAGIS®.Package insert 72 provides a detailed description of the composition ofeach specialty pharmaceutical supported by pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43. Referring to FIG. 25, safety information 74 isprovided. Safety information 74 indicates what diseases and symptomseach specialty pharmaceutical supported by pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 can be used to treat.

In some embodiments, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 furtherprovides the ability to generate a schedule for when a patient shouldreceive the specialty pharmaceutical. This schedule can be stored in thepatient record 46 associated with the patient. Furthermore, in someembodiments, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 can send an alertto a care practitioner or patient at a time prior to when the patient isdue for a dosage of the predetermined pharmaceutical (e.g., the hourbefore, the day before, the week before, etc.) as determined by thecalendar. In some embodiments, pharmaceutical online tracking module 43further provides a calendar so that when a practitioner logs onto module43, a calendar is presented that provide all upcoming activityassociated the patients in the practitioner's office that receive aparticular specialty drug (e.g., SYNAGIS®). In some embodiments,pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 sends a message to a specialtypharmacy distributor a couple of weeks ahead of time before a dosage isdue for a patient, to ensure that the distributor ships the drug to thepractitioner's office in time for the scheduled administration.

In some embodiments, specialty pharmacy distributors are able to linkback to pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 so that, rather thanrequiring the practitioner's office to proactively track the status ordisposition of a prescription request, the specialty pharmacydistributor can perform the task by processing the prescription anduploading the status of the approval process into pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 (e.g., whether the prescription has been denied, isunder review, been received, or been approved).

Typically the type of clinical criteria for approving a given specialtypharmaceutical varies from insurer to insurer. The default mode forpharmaceutical online tracking module 43 is to obtain and storesufficient clinical information for a given patient so that there isenough information to satisfy the queries of any supported insurer for agiven specialty pharmaceutical, regardless of what particular clinicalthe supported insurer may demand in order approve the given specialtypharmaceutical. In some alternative embodiments, however, the clinicalinformation that is queried for and stored for a given patient isdetermined by the identity of the patient's insurer. In this way, ratherthan requesting a large set of clinical information, only the subset ofclinical information that is required of a given patient's insurer isstored for the patient. This is advantageous because it reduces theamount of information that the clinical practitioner has to input intothe record 46 stored for the patient.

In some embodiments each medical practitioner logs into pharmaceuticalonline tracking module 43 and maintains an account with the module.Further, each respective medical practitioner or respective medicalpractitioner group only has access to the patient records 46 of thepatients of the respective medical practitioner or respective medicalpractitioner group. Advantageously, as illustrated in FIG. 26, when apractitioner in a medical group logs into pharmaceutical online trackingmodule 43, the practitioner can review a patient roster which includesthe names of all the patients that receive care at the medical group.The roster can include information such as referral number, patientname, location where care is given, the name of the responsible doctorwithin the practice group, the name of the patient's insurer, the nameof the patient's specialty pharmaceutical delivery (SPD) service and thestatus time. As further illustrated in FIG. 26, the patient roster canbe queried based on any combination of date, status, provider, location,first name, and last name.

In some embodiments, each specialty pharmacists logs into pharmaceuticalonline tracking module 43 and maintains an account with the module.Further, each respective specialty pharmacists only has access to thepatient records 46 of the patients of the respective specialtypharmacists. In some embodiments, insurers, including prescriptionbenefit managers, that cover specialty pharmaceuticals do not haveaccess to pharmaceutical online tracking module 43 but, rather, receiveall their information from specialty pharmacists. In some embodimentseach insurer does have access to pharmaceutical online tracking module43. In some embodiments each insurer logs into pharmaceutical onlinetracking module 43 and maintains an account with the module. Further,each respective insurer only has access to the patient records 46 of thepatients of the respective medical practitioner or respective medicalpractitioner group. In typical embodiments, the manufacturers of thespecialty pharmaceuticals tracked by pharmaceutical online trackingmodule 43 do not have access to patent records 46. In some embodiments,manufacturers of the specialty pharmaceuticals tracked by pharmaceuticalonline tracking module 43 only have Health Insurance Portability andAccountability Act (HIPAA) compliant access to patient data store 44and, in particular, patient records 46.

Computer and Computer Program Product Implementations

The present invention can be implemented as a tangible computer programproduct that comprises a computer program mechanism embedded in atangible computer-readable storage medium. Further, any of the methodsof the present invention can be implemented in one or more computers.Further still, any of the methods of the present invention can beimplemented in one or more computer program products. Some embodimentsof the present invention provide a computer program product that encodesany or all of the methods disclosed herein. Such methods can be storedon a CD-ROM, DVD, magnetic disk storage product, or any othercomputer-readable data or program storage product. Such methods can alsobe embedded in permanent storage, such as ROM, one or more programmablechips, or one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs).Such permanent storage can be localized in a server, 802.11 accesspoint, 802.11 wireless bridge/station, repeater, router, mobile phone,or other electronic devices. Such methods encoded in the computerprogram product can also be distributed electronically, via the Internetor otherwise.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide a computer programproduct that contains any or all of the program modules shown in FIG. 1and/or any or all of the methods disclosed herein. These program modulescan be stored on a CD-ROM, DVD, magnetic disk storage product, or anyother tangible computer-readable data or tangible program storageproduct. The program modules can also be embedded in permanent storage,such as ROM, one or more programmable chips, or one or more applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs). Such permanent storage can belocalized in a server, 802.11 access point, 802.11 wirelessbridge/station, repeater, router, mobile phone, or other electronicdevices.

Clinical Information

Examples of clinical information have been provided above in conjunctionwith the input to FIG. 6 through 10. Additional examples of clinicalinformation include, but are not limited to the examples provided inthis section. In some embodiments, clinical information is abundancedata of mRNA transcripts, cDNAs, or cRNAs for mRNA transcribed from thegene, or nucleic acid derived from any of the foregoing that aremeasured from a biological sample from the patient. Furthermore, in someembodiments, clinical information is abundance data of proteins orfragments thereof that are measured from a biological sample from thepatient. Additional examples of clinical information include, but arenot limited to, response to treatment, e.g. administration of a drug,efficacy of a drug, predisposition to a disease, a stage of a disease,efficacy of a drug as a function of drug dosage, bone density,cholesterol level, obesity, blood sugar level, eye color, blood type,coordination, percentage body fat (PBF), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR),fasting serum concentrations of triglycerides (TAG), fasting serumconcentrations of total cholesterol (CHOL), and fasting serumconcentrations of glucose (GLUC).

In some embodiments, clinical information comprises observations made bya patient's physician. In some instances, the observations made by aphysician include, or can be represented by, a code from theInternational Classification of Diseases, 9^(th) Revision, prepared bythe Department of Health and Human Services (ICD-9 codes), or anequivalent. The clinical information can include laboratory test results(e.g., cholesterol level, high density lipoprotein/low densitylipoprotein ratios, triglyceride levels, etc.), statements made by thepatient about their health, x-rays, biopsy results, and any othermedical information typically relied upon by a doctor to make adiagnosis of the patient.

REFERENCES CITED

All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference intheir entirety and for all purposes to the same extent as if eachindividual publication or patent or patent application was specificallyand individually indicated to be incorporated by reference in itsentirety herein for all purposes.

MODIFICATIONS

Many modifications and variations of this invention can be made withoutdeparting from its spirit and scope, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art. The specific embodiments described herein areoffered by way of example only, and the invention is to be limited onlyby the terms of the appended claims, along with the full scope ofequivalents to which such claims are entitled.

1. A method for processing a request for a prescription for apredetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based uponclinical information of a patient, the method comprising: (A) obtainingprescription information for the patient, wherein the prescriptioninformation comprises (i) an identity of the patient, (ii) an amount ofthe predetermined pharmaceutical, and (iii) a prescription for theamount of the predetermined pharmaceutical; (B) receiving patientclinical information, wherein the patient clinical information comprisesone or more determinants of the patient and wherein each determinant inthe one or more determinants contributes to a basis for authorizing ordenying coverage to said patient for said predetermined pharmaceutical,and wherein at least one determinant in the one or more determinants isnot a standardized code; (C) storing the prescription information andthe patient clinical information in electronic form; (D) sending theprescription information and the patient clinical information to apharmacy that is configured to use the prescription information and thepatient clinical information to make a coverage decision as to whetherto grant coverage to said patient for said predetermined pharmaceutical,wherein said coverage decision made by the pharmacy is based upon (i) aset of guidelines provided by an insurer of the patient, (ii) theprescription information, and (iii) the patient clinical information;and (E) communicating the coverage decision to a user interface device,a monitor, a computer-readable storage medium in tangible form, acomputer-readable memory, or a local or remote computer system; ordisplaying the coverage decision in a user readable form.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the patient clinical information comprises at leastone determinant from the group of determinants consisting of agestational age of the patient, a weight of the patient, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has congenital heart disease, acategorical indication as to whether the patient has chronic respiratorydisease arising in the perinatal period, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has a chronic pulmonary disease, and a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a congenital anomaly of therespiratory system.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the patientclinical information comprises a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has congenital heart disease wherein, when the patient hascongenital heart disease, the group of determinants further comprises acategorical indication as to whether the patient has (i) a moderatepulmonary hypertension or a severe pulmonary hypertension, (ii) anidentity of a medication that is being given to the patient for thecongenital heart disease, and (iii) a date when the medication for thecongenital heart disease was administered to the patient.
 4. The methodof claim 1, wherein the patient clinical information comprises acategorical indication as to whether the patient has a chronic pulmonarydisease wherein, when the patient has the chronic pulmonary disease, thegroup of determinants further comprises (i) a categorical indication asto whether the patient receives supplemental oxygen, (ii) a categoricalindication as to whether the patient receives a corticosteroid, (iii) acategorical indication as to whether the patient receives a diuretic,and (iv) a categorical indication as to whether the patient receives abronchodilator.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said coverage decisioncomprises determining an age of the patient from the patient clinicalinformation or the prescription information and wherein coverage to saidpatient for said predetermined pharmaceutical is denied when the patientis more than two years old.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein thepatient clinical information comprises at least two determinants fromthe group of determinants consisting of a gestational age of thepatient, a weight of the patient, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has congenital heart disease, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has chronic respiratory disease arising in theperinatal period, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hasa chronic pulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the patient clinical information comprises atleast five determinants from the group of determinants consisting of agestational age of the patient, a weight of the patient, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has congenital heart disease, acategorical indication as to whether the patient has chronic respiratorydisease arising in the perinatal period, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has a chronic pulmonary disease, and a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a congenital anomaly of therespiratory system.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the patientclinical information comprises one or more risk factors selected fromthe group consisting of a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has a school-age sibling, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient has been subjected to an air pollutant, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient attends day care, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has severe neuromuscular disease, acategorical indication as to whether the patient is subject to crowdedliving conditions, a categorical indication as to whether the patienthad a birth weight of less than 2500 grams, a categorical indication asto whether the patient was part of a multiple birth, a categoricalindication as to whether there is a history of asthma in the patient'sfamily, a categorical indication as to whether the patient suffers froma congenital abnormality or airway, and a categorical indication as towhether the patient has been exposed to tobacco smoke.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the patient clinical information comprises five or morerisk factors selected from the group consisting of a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a school-age sibling, acategorical indication as to whether the patient has been subjected toan air pollutant, a categorical indication as to whether the patientattends day care, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hassevere neuromuscular disease, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient is subject to crowded living conditions, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient had a birth weight of less than2500 grams, a categorical indication as to whether the patient was partof a multiple birth, a categorical indication as to whether there is ahistory of asthma in the patient's family, a categorical indication asto whether the patient suffers from a congenital abnormality or airway,and a categorical indication as to whether the patient has been exposedto tobacco smoke.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the sending (D)comprises sending the prescription information and the patient clinicalinformation to a remote computer associated with the pharmacy in apacket-based form over a wide area network or Internet.
 11. The methodof claim 10, wherein the prescription information and the clinicalinformation is sent in a secure manner over the wide area network orInternet.
 12. The method of claim 10, wherein the prescriptioninformation and the patient clinical information is sent using theHypertext Transport Protocol over a secure socket layer.
 13. The methodof claim 1, wherein the sending (D) comprises sending the prescriptioninformation and the patient clinical information to the pharmacy by FAX,mail, or hand delivery.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein theprescription information for the patient further includes one or moreinsurance information elements selected from the group consisting of anidentification of the primary insurer for the patient, a primarycardholder name, a primary cardholder social security number, a primarypolicy number, a primary insurer telephone number, a primary employer, aprimary group number, an identification of a secondary insurer for thepatient, a secondary cardholder name, a secondary cardholder socialsecurity number, a secondary policy number, a secondary insurertelephone number, a secondary employer, and a secondary group number.15. The method of claim 1, wherein the prescription information for thepatient further includes six or more insurance information elementsselected from the group consisting of an identification of the primaryinsurer for the patient, a primary cardholder name, a primary cardholdersocial security number, a primary policy number, a primary insurertelephone number, a primary employer, a primary group number, anidentification of a secondary insurer for the patient, a secondarycardholder name, a secondary cardholder social security number, asecondary policy number, a secondary insurer telephone number, asecondary employer, and a secondary group number.
 16. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the sending (D) and the communicating (E) are each donewithout human intervention.
 17. The method of claim 1, wherein eachdeterminant in the one or more determinants is not a standardized code.18. A computer-readable medium storing a computer program product,executable by a computer, to process a request for a prescription for apredetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based uponclinical data of a patient, the computer program product comprisinginstructions for: (A) obtaining prescription information for thepatient, wherein the prescription information comprises (i) an identityof the patient, (ii) an amount of the predetermined pharmaceutical, and(iii) a prescription for the amount of the predetermined pharmaceutical;(B) receiving patient clinical information, wherein the patient clinicalinformation comprises one or more determinants of the patient andwherein each determinant in the one or more determinants contributes toa basis for authorizing or denying coverage to said patient for saidpredetermined pharmaceutical, and wherein at least one determinant inthe one or more determinants is not a standardized code; (C) storing theprescription information and the patient clinical information inelectronic form; (D) sending the prescription information and thepatient clinical information to a pharmacy that is configured to use theprescription information and the patient clinical information to make acoverage decision as to whether to grant coverage to said patient forsaid predetermined pharmaceutical, wherein said coverage decision madeby the pharmacy is based upon (i) a set of guidelines provided by aninsurer of the patient, (ii) the prescription information, and (iii) thepatient clinical information; and (E) communicating the coveragedecision to a user interface device, a monitor, a computer-readablestorage medium in tangible form, a computer-readable memory, or a localor remote computer system; or displaying the coverage decision in a userreadable form.
 19. An apparatus for processing a request for aprescription for a predetermined pharmaceutical that requirespreauthorization based upon clinical data of a patient, the apparatuscomprising: a processor; and a memory, coupled to the processor, thememory storing a module comprising instructions for: (A) obtainingprescription information for the patient, wherein the prescriptioninformation comprises (i) an identity of the patient, (ii) an amount ofthe predetermined pharmaceutical, and (iii) a prescription for theamount of the predetermined pharmaceutical; (B) receiving patientclinical information, wherein the patient clinical information comprisesone or more determinants of the patient and wherein each determinant inthe one or more determinants contributes to a basis for authorizing ordenying coverage to said patient for said predetermined pharmaceutical,and wherein at least one determinant in the one or more determinants isnot a standardized code; (C) storing the prescription information andthe patient clinical information in electronic form; (D) sending theprescription information and the patient clinical information to apharmacy that is configured to use the prescription information and thepatient clinical information to make a coverage decision as to whetherto grant coverage to said patient for said predetermined pharmaceutical,wherein said coverage decision made by the pharmacy is based upon (i) aset of guidelines provided by an insurer of the patient, (ii) theprescription information, and (iii) the patient clinical information;and (E) communicating the coverage decision to a user interface device,a monitor, a computer-readable storage medium in tangible form, acomputer-readable memory, or a local or remote computer system; ordisplaying the coverage decision in a user readable form.
 20. A methodfor managing a plurality of patients that are each in need of apredetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based uponpatient clinical data, the method comprising: (A) obtaining prescriptioninformation for each respective patient in the plurality of patients,wherein the prescription information comprises an identity of therespective patient and an amount of the predetermined pharmaceuticalthat has been prescribed to the patient; (B) receiving clinicalinformation associated with each respective patient in the plurality ofpatients, wherein the clinical information for each respective patientcomprises one or more determinants and wherein each determinant in theone or more determinants contributes to a basis for authorizing ordenying coverage to the respective patient for the predeterminedpharmaceutical, and wherein at least one determinant in the one or moredeterminants is not a standardized code; (C) storing the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information in electronic form; (D)requesting coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients for thepredetermined pharmaceutical by transmitting the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information to a specialty pharmaceuticaldistributor at a remote location by electronic means; and (E)communicating a grant or denial of coverage for a patient in theplurality of patients for the predetermined pharmaceutical to a userinterface device, a monitor, a computer-readable storage medium intangible form, a computer-readable memory, a local or remote computersystem, or a record associated with the patient; or displaying a grantor denial of coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients for thepredetermined pharmaceutical in a user readable form.
 21. The method ofclaim 20, wherein the clinical information for the patient comprises atleast one determinant from the group of determinants consisting of agestational age of the patient, a weight of the patient, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has congenital heart disease, acategorical indication as to whether the patient has chronic respiratorydisease arising in the perinatal period, a categorical indication as towhether the patient has a chronic pulmonary disease, and a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a congenital anomaly of therespiratory system.
 22. The method of claim 20, wherein the clinicalinformation for the patient comprises a categorical indication as towhether the patient has congenital heart disease wherein, when thepatient has congenital heart disease, the group of determinants furthercomprises: (i) a categorical indication as to whether the patient has amoderate pulmonary hypertension or a severe pulmonary hypertension, (ii)an identity of a medication that is being given to the patient for thecongenital heart disease, and (iii) a date when the medication for thecongenital heart disease was administered to the patient.
 23. The methodof claim 20, wherein the clinical information for the patient comprisesa categorical indication as to whether the patient has a chronicpulmonary disease wherein, when the patient has the chronic pulmonarydisease, the group of determinants further comprises: (i) a categoricalindication as to whether the patient receives supplemental oxygen, (ii)a categorical indication as to whether the patient receives acorticosteroid, (iii) a categorical indication as to whether the patientreceives a diuretic, and (iv) a categorical indication as to whether thepatient receives a bronchodilator.
 24. The method of claim 20, whereinthe requesting (D) further comprises providing an age of the patient andwherein the communicating (E) comprises receiving a denial of coveragefor said patient when the patient is more than two years old.
 25. Themethod of claim 20, wherein the clinical information for the patientcomprises at least two determinants from the group of determinantsconsisting of: a gestational age of the patient, a weight of thepatient, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hascongenital heart disease, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has chronic respiratory disease arising in the perinatal period,a categorical indication as to whether the patient has a chronicpulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system.
 26. Themethod of claim 20, wherein the clinical information for the patientcomprises at least five determinants from the group of determinantsconsisting of: a gestational age of the patient, a weight of thepatient, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hascongenital heart disease, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has chronic respiratory disease arising in the perinatal period,a categorical indication as to whether the patient has a chronicpulmonary disease, and a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has a congenital anomaly of the respiratory system.
 27. Themethod of claim 20, wherein the clinical information for the patientcomprises one or more risk factors selected from the group consistingof: a categorical indication as to whether the patient has a school-agesibling, a categorical indication as to whether the patient has beensubjected to an air pollutant, a categorical indication as to whetherthe patient attends day care, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has severe neuromuscular disease, a categorical indication as towhether the patient is subjected to crowded living conditions, acategorical indication as to whether the patient had a birth weight ofless than 2500 grams, a categorical indication as to whether the patientwas part of a multiple birth, a categorical indication as to whetherthere is a history of asthma in the patient's family, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient suffers from a congenitalabnormality or airway, and a categorical indication as to whether thepatient has been exposed to tobacco smoke.
 28. The method of claim 20,wherein the clinical information for the patient comprises five or morerisk factors selected from the group consisting of: a categoricalindication as to whether the patient has a school-age sibling, acategorical indication as to whether the patient has been subjected toan air pollutant, a categorical indication as to whether the patientattends day care, a categorical indication as to whether the patient hassevere neuromuscular disease, a categorical indication as to whether thepatient is subjected to crowded living conditions, a categoricalindication as to whether the patient had a birth weight of less than2500 grams, a categorical indication as to whether the patient was partof a multiple birth, a categorical indication as to whether there is ahistory of asthma in the patient's family, a categorical indication asto whether the patient suffers from a congenital abnormality or airway,and a categorical indication as to whether the patient has been exposedto tobacco smoke.
 29. The method of claim 20, wherein the requesting (D)comprises transmitting the prescription information and the clinicalinformation for the patient to a remote computer in a packet-based formover a wide area network or Internet.
 30. The method of claim 29,wherein the prescription information and the clinical information forthe patient is transmitted in a secure manner over the wide area networkor Internet.
 31. The method of claim 29, wherein the prescriptioninformation and the clinical information for the patient is transmittedusing the Hypertext Transport Protocol over a secure socket layer. 32.The method of claim 20, wherein the requesting (D) comprises sending theprescription information and the patient clinical information to thepharmacy by FAX, mail, or hand delivery.
 33. The method of claim 20,wherein the prescription information for the patient further includesone or more insurance information elements selected from the groupconsisting of: an identification of the primary insurer for the patient,a primary cardholder name, a primary cardholder social security number,a primary policy number, a primary insurer telephone number, a primaryemployer, a primary group number, an identification of a secondaryinsurer for the patient, a secondary cardholder name, a secondarycardholder social security number, a secondary policy number, asecondary insurer telephone number, a secondary employer, and asecondary group number.
 34. The method of claim 20, the method furthercomprising storing in electronic form an identity of a specialtypharmacy distributor for a patient in the plurality of patients.
 35. Themethod of claim 20, the method further comprising storing in electronicform an identity of a drug benefit provider for a patient in theplurality of patients.
 36. The method of claim 20, wherein the clinicalinformation for the patient comprises a categorical indication as towhether the patient spent time in a neonatal intensive care unit. 37.The method of claim 20, wherein the prescription information for thepatient further comprises an address where the predeterminedpharmaceutical is to be shipped.
 38. The method of claim 20, the methodfurther comprising: (i) generating a schedule for when the predeterminedpharmaceutical is to be administered to the patient; (ii) storing theschedule in a patient record associated with the patient; and (iii)communicating the schedule to a user interface device, a monitor, acomputer-readable storage medium in tangible form, a computer-readablememory, a local or remote computer system, or a record associated withthe patient; or displaying the schedule in a user readable form.
 39. Themethod of claim 38, the method further comprising: (iv) sending an alertto a care practitioner or the patient at a time prior to when thepatient is due for a dosage of the predetermined pharmaceutical asdetermined by the schedule.
 40. The method of claim 20, the methodfurther comprising storing, in electronic form, an identity of eachpractitioner in a medical practitioner group that is responsible formaking requests for prescriptions for said predetermined pharmaceuticalfor any of the patients in the plurality of patients.
 41. The method ofclaim 20, the method further comprising storing, in electronic form, thepackage insert for the predetermined pharmaceutical.
 42. The method ofclaim 20, the method further comprising storing, in electronic form, ofsafety information for the predetermined pharmaceutical.
 43. The methodof claim 20, wherein each determinant in the one or more determinants isnot a standardized code.
 44. A computer-readable medium storing acomputer program product, executable by a computer, to manage aplurality of patients that are each in need of a predeterminedpharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based upon patientclinical data, the computer program product comprising instructions for:(A) obtaining prescription information for each respective patient inthe plurality of patients, wherein the prescription informationcomprises an identity of the respective patient and an amount of thepredetermined pharmaceutical that has been prescribed to the patient;(B) receiving clinical information associated with each respectivepatient in the plurality of patients, wherein the clinical informationfor each respective patient comprises one or more determinants andwherein each determinant in the one or more determinants contributes toa basis for authorizing or denying coverage to the respective patientfor the predetermined pharmaceutical, and wherein at least onedeterminant in the one or more determinants is not a standardized code;(C) storing the prescription information and the clinical information inelectronic form; (D) requesting coverage for a patient in the pluralityof patients for the predetermined pharmaceutical by transmitting theprescription information and the clinical information to a specialtypharmaceutical distributor at a remote location by electronic means; and(E) communicating a grant or denial of coverage for a patient in theplurality of patients for the predetermined pharmaceutical to a userinterface device, a monitor, a computer-readable storage medium intangible form, a computer-readable memory, a local or remote computersystem, or a record associated with the patient; or displaying a grantor denial of coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients for thepredetermined pharmaceutical in a user readable form.
 45. An apparatusfor managing a plurality of patients that are each in need of apredetermined pharmaceutical that requires preauthorization based uponpatient clinical data, the apparatus comprising: a processor; and amemory, coupled to the processor, the memory storing a module comprisinginstructions for: (A) obtaining prescription information for eachrespective patient in the plurality of patients, wherein theprescription information comprises an identity of the respective patientand an amount of the predetermined pharmaceutical that has beenprescribed to the patient; (B) receiving clinical information associatedwith each respective patient in the plurality of patients, wherein theclinical information for each respective patient comprises one or moredeterminants and wherein each determinant in the one or moredeterminants contributes to a basis for authorizing or denying coverageto the respective patient for the predetermined pharmaceutical, andwherein at least one determinant in the one or more determinants is nota standardized code; (C) storing the prescription information and theclinical information in electronic form; (D) requesting coverage for apatient in the plurality of patients for the predeterminedpharmaceutical by transmitting the prescription information and theclinical information to a specialty pharmaceutical distributor at aremote location by electronic means; and (E) communicating a grant ordenial of coverage for a patient in the plurality of patients for thepredetermined pharmaceutical to a user interface device, a monitor, acomputer-readable storage medium in tangible form, a computer-readablememory, a local or remote computer system, or a record associated withthe patient; or displaying a grant or denial of coverage for a patientin the plurality of patients for the predetermined pharmaceutical in auser readable form.